moving from Wisconsin to the Naples area (Tampa, Cape Coral: to rent, insurance)

[121804]

I believe that Naples is one of the most overpriced housing markets in Florida if not the most overpriced.

The issue you may find in Naples is that there is lack of real employment. it is a tourism & low paying service economy for some very overrated retirees and people who look in the mirror a lot. It is VERY hard to maybe impossible to make ends meet in that area of Florida based on what you do along with your husband. Can you afford in the area of $1200-$1400/moth for rent...that is about the going rate for a reasonable place there. Food, gas, every day living expenses are your discretion. I would highly consider forming a budget before you get your hopes too high for the Naples area.

Are there other areas of Florida you may enjoy? It is said that northern FL is more affordable & a little better on the job front.

I say that if one does not HAVE to move to SW FL, then don't. There are some very serious economic issues effecting this area of FL.

Regardless, best of luck.

[JohnVosilla]

Originally Posted by aftonacres

You are correct with your vibe, and we are not wealthy at all. We are a hard working couple with out children, I have worked construction to a bakery clerk. I am presently a customer service tech. I feel i can do about anything.
We will be in Naples for a week on the 6th of September. We were in Orlando and did not like it so much. We are presently working on a place to live and will be searching for employment when we are down there. We know this will be a hard move with out family or friends to help us get settled, but we are hoping it will all work out. We really would like to make Naples our new home.
I hope we are not disappointed when we are there, and we can have more of a possitive feed back to others who would like to have the same dreams of a new life in Florida.

You might want to check out some of the other cities in the I-75 corridor between Naples and Ocala before making your final decision.. Being further up the road like in Punta Gorda or Venice gives you flexibility to travel for work in both directions. In Naples you are limited.. From Sarasota, as nice as any place in our state IMHO, you can commute as far as the Ft Myers or Tampa/St Pete area for work if it is necessary.. Hope it all works out for you guys. I love Milwaukee..very underrated city

[Tarastomsgirl]

Originally Posted by 121804

I believe that Naples is one of the most overpriced housing markets in Florida if not the most overpriced.

You are correct in say that, directly from Money Magazine..

By Winzer's figuring, Santa Barbara is the most overpriced housing market in the nation (see table below). The median home there costs $567,300, 80 percent more than it should.

Naples, Fla. is a close second - the median home there will set a buyer back $417,400, 74 percent above equilibrium. Will Naples pass Santa Barbara as No. 1? Prices there rose 38 percent during the past year versus just 11 percent in Santa Barbara.

Every year Naples makes that list of most expensive place to live in the US. And the town is hardly worth the price. I hope you like seeing your tax money go towards "median rejuvination" so you can never see any cars coming towards you when you have to cross over a road from and expanse of overgrown bushes and palm trees in the median as oppose to a road thats been under construction for 5 years get done.

[HockeyMom72]

Originally Posted by Tarastomsgirl

You are correct in say that, directly from Money Magazine..

By Winzer's figuring, Santa Barbara is the most overpriced housing market in the nation (see table below). The median home there costs $567,300, 80 percent more than it should.

Naples, Fla. is a close second - the median home there will set a buyer back $417,400, 74 percent above equilibrium. Will Naples pass Santa Barbara as No. 1? Prices there rose 38 percent during the past year versus just 11 percent in Santa Barbara.

Every year Naples makes that list of most expensive place to live in the US. And the town is hardly worth the price. I hope you like seeing your tax money go towards "median rejuvination" so you can never see any cars coming towards you when you have to cross over a road from and expanse of overgrown bushes and palm trees in the median as oppose to a road thats been under construction for 5 years get done.

The costs of an average house in Naples is about the same as those on LI. Yes, the taxes are higher in NY, but you get more for your money (bigger house/more property) and the salaries are about double in NY and far more plentiful. Yet, you never hear that the LI market is over priced as you do with Naples. Those aforementioned is probably why.

Sorry, but the weather cannot make up for this.

[essessemm]

Originally Posted by 121804

Can you afford in the area of $1200-$1400/moth for rent...that is about the going rate for a reasonable place there. Food, gas, every day living expenses are your discretion. I would highly consider forming a budget before you get your hopes too high for the Naples area.

Naples is relatively expensive, yes. But there is absolutely no reason that a couple can not find a condo cheaper than $1,200-$1,400 per month. A few years ago... maybe not -- but things are changing. There are so many units for rent rent right now, because no one can sell them.

Here is a long list of 1 bedroom places for rent under $1,000 in and around Naples: fort myers craigslist > apts/housing for rent: search for "naples".

Good luck.

[THX 1138]

Naples is a nice place to visit off season, the job market there is mainly service. Worse then the east coast IMHO. I wouldn't recommend moving there unless 1) Don't have to work and are rich 2) have a very good job offer that gives you job security and a long term situation and pay's over $120K/year combined salary just enough maybe depending on standards.

Also I would think twice before taking a job that is specialized, if you lose your job odds are there will be no place to go in the area and you may be forced to move. Service jobs are abundant and you will be surprised seeing a lot of older people in these positions, but in reality these jobs will barely pay enough to afford your monthly expenses before rent or mortgage.

[essessemm]

Originally Posted by THX 1138

Service jobs are abundant and you will be surprised seeing a lot of older people in these positions, but in reality these jobs will barely pay enough to afford your monthly expenses before rent or mortgage.

Service jobs ARE abundant and you would actually be surprised at how much they pay in some instances. A lot of retail establishments are hiring (starting) at about $10/hour. While this is not outstanding, a couple with a combined wage of $20/hour will be able to live comfortably if they live within their means and could afford a 1 bedroom place at about $1,000 per month.

By the way, I'm also from Wisconsin and came to Naples with my family for a job opportunity

[THX 1138]

Originally Posted by essessemm

Service jobs ARE abundant and you would actually be surprised at how much they pay in some instances. A lot of retail establishments are hiring (starting) at about $10/hour. While this is not outstanding, a couple with a combined wage of $20/hour will be able to live comfortably if they live within their means and could afford a 1 bedroom place at about $1,000 per month.

By the way, I'm also from Wisconsin and came to Naples with my family for a job opportunity

$10/hr is poverty here. Not sure what living comfortably means to you? Don't forget those service jobs rarely pay benefits, no health insurance and/or etc. Oh I'm sure it can be done, eating ramen noodle for dinner every night and watching every penny...but never being able to enjoy or do anything on the weekend and just scraping by is not fun.

[Tarastomsgirl]

Here's a comparision -my husband made close to $20.00 an hour when we left, we were barely scraping by, between outragous rent, insurance, food, etc. there were months where it was do we buy food or pay electric. Since our move with nearly the same pay he was making down there, we can now afford a 2 story townhouse to rent, pay all our bills, food etc and still have money to save. This is no comparing Naples to other places, Naples is not a realistic place to live unless you income is over $5,000 a month, you might be able to surive on that.

[essessemm]

Originally Posted by THX 1138

$10/hr is poverty here. Not sure what living comfortably means to you? Don't forget those service jobs rarely pay benefits, no health insurance and/or etc. Oh I'm sure it can be done, eating ramen noodle for dinner every night and watching every penny...but never being able to enjoy or do anything on the weekend and just scraping by is not fun.

My point is that if you want to live in Naples with a combined income of $20/hr it can be done as long as you live within your means. No you will not be able to go out to eat a few times per week, but it is possible rent an affordable home and still put money away each month.